Safe and DrugFree Schools

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Safe and Drug-Free Schools CommunitiesPlanni
ng for Success!

• Region One ESCClara Cáceres Contreras956-984-612
  5clara.contreras_at_esconett.org

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Introduction

• Prevention is
• The active process of creating conditions and
  attributes that promote the well-being of
  people.
• -SAMSHA and OJJDP

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Continuum of Care
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Why Prevention Is Important?

• According to a recently published RAND study, the
  cost benefits of model prevention programs far
  outweigh the actual cost of the programs.

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Prevention is important because

• Youth who experiment with, and use, cigarettes at
  an early age are more likely than nonsmokers to
  experience a variety of behavior problems by the
  time they reach 12th grade.
• Youth at highest risk often are not only frequent
  and heavy users of tobacco and alcohol, but also
  are polysubstance users and have high levels of
  problems in social functioning, criminal
  activity, physical health, psychological
  distress, and substance dependence.
• Poor school performance, absenteeism, prior
  dropout status predict future truancy, dropout,
  and drug use.

Science-based Prevention Programs and
Principles, 2002 SAMHSA
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Prevention is important

• Half of all teensabout 60 report that drugs are
  used, kept, or sold at their schools
• Students at these schools are 3 times more likely
  to use ATOD
• Of those who have tried cigarettes, 86 still
  smoke as seniors
• 83 continue to get drunk as seniors

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Prevention is important

• The more a student uses ATOD, the lower his/her
  GPA
• Alcohol abuse can reduce brain size --the
  hippocampus (responsible for learning and
  memory) shrinks 10
• 3 drinks for a teenager take a far higher toll
  than an older drinker (25 greater impairment)

Prevention Alert CSAP
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The Tie to Academic Achievement
A recent study by the Human Services Policy
Center, University of Washington, concluded that

• The level of peer substance use in schools has a
  substantial impact on the academic performance of
  students
• Peer substance use is an important predictor of
  math and reading test scores. Thus, the higher
  the level of peer substance use, the lower the
  math and reading test scores of all students not
  just the substance users

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The Tie to Academic Achievement

• Students whose peers have little or no
  involvement with drinking and drug use score
  higher than students whose peers had low level
  drinking or drug use
• On average, students whose peers had little or no
  involvement with drinking or drug use score
  higher.

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Prevalence of Academic Success by Number of Risk
and Protective Factors
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Comprehensive Prevention Programs

• Prevention education is developmentally- based
  instruction for all children and youth from early
  childhood to 12th grade that
• Teaches important skills, such as social skills,
  conflict management skills, problem-solving
  skills
• Promotes a sense of individual responsibility,
  and provides information and effective techniques
  for resisting peer pressure
• Addresses the legal, personal, and social
  consequences of violent and disruptive behavior,
  such as bullying and harassment, and/or the
  legal, social, and health consequences of ATOD
  use.

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A Comprehensive Approach

• Information dissemination Newsletter for
  parents/ all school assembly
• Prevention Education Classroom lessons, booster
  sessions, integration into school improvement
  activities
• Alternatives Reinforcement of skills in
  afterschool program

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A Comprehensive Approach

• Problem Identification/Referral Individual
  intervention system
• Community School- Community leadership team and
  all school involvement
• Environmental Strategies Schoolwide
  expectations, common area expectations, system of
  consequences

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The Context of Prevention Today

• Increased emphasis on results
• Data-driven needs assessment and decision-making
• Use of scientifically researched based programs
• Unifying predictive framework

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Public Health Prevention Model
The prevention of heart disease is an example
of risk and protection focused prevention.

• Risks include
• Smoking
• High fat diet
• High cholesterol

• Protection includes
• Exercise
• Diet high in fruits and vegetables

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Risk and Protective Factors

• Risk factors are conditions for a group,
  individual, or defined geographic area that
  increase the likelihood of a substance use/abuse
  or other problems occurring

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Risk and Protective Factors

• Protective factors are conditions that build
  resilience to substance abuse and other problems
  and can serve to buffer the negative effects of
  risk

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Prevention Theory Risk and Protection Focused
Prevention

• There is a link between risk and protective
  factors and youth behavior. Youth high in risk or
  low in protection are more likely to engage in
  problem behaviors.
• Risk and protective factors predict future youth
  behaviors both positive and problem behaviors

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Risk Factors

• Are characteristics of four areas in a young
  persons life
• 1. Community
• 2. Family
• 3. School
• 4. Peer groups and the characteristics of the
  young person

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Risk factors
Predict increased likelihood of five problem
behaviors

• Alcohol and other drug use
• Delinquency
• School dropout
• Teen pregnancy
• Violent behavior

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Protective Factors
Protective factors must

• Buffer the effects of risk exposure
• Demonstrate results in multiple studies
• Demonstrate results in longitudinal studies

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Protective Factors

• Healthy beliefs and clear standards
• Bonding
• Prosocial opportunities
• Competencies and skills
• Reinforcement for prosocial involvement
• Individual characteristics (intelligence and
  temperament)

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School Risk Factors

• Academic failure beginning in late elementary
  grades (4-6), academic failure increases the risk
  of both drug use and delinquency
• Lack of commitment to school Surveys of high
  school seniors have shown that substance use is
  significantly lower among those who expect to
  attend college than among those who do not.
  Factors such as liking school, spending time on
  homework, and perceiving their coursework as
  relevant are also negatively related to drug use.

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School Protective Factors

• Opportunities for positive involvement When
  young people are given more opportunities to
  participate meaningfully in important school
  activities, they are less likely to engage in
  problem behavior
• Rewards for Conventional Involvement When young
  people are recognized and rewarded for their
  contributions to school, they are less likely to
  be involved in substance abuse and other problem
  behaviors

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Effective Prevention Programming NIDA Principles

• Principles for School-based programs
• Do the school-based programs reach children from
  kindergarten through high school? If not, do they
  at least reach children during the critical
  middle school or junior school years?
• Do the programs contain multiple years of
  intervention?
• Do the programs use a well-tested, standardized
  intervention with detailed lesson plans and
  student material?

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Effective Prevention Programming NIDA Principles
Principles for School-based programs

• Do the programs teach resistance skills through
  interactive methods (modeling, role-playing,
  discussion, group feedback, reinforcement)

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Effective Prevention Programming NIDA Principles

• Principles for School-based programs

• Do the programs foster prosocial bonding to the
  school and community?

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Effective Prevention Programming NIDA Principles

• Principles for School-based programs

• Do the programs
• teach social competency (community,
  self-efficacy, assertiveness) and resistance
  skills that are culturally and developmentally
  appropriate
• promote positive peer influence
• promote anti-drug social norms
• include adequate number of sessions

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What Works Substance Abuse Prevention
Key elements of effective substance abuse
programs include

• Help students recognize internal and external
  pressures that influence them to use ATOD
• Develop personal, social, and refusal skills to
  resist these pressures
• Teach that using ATOD is not the norm even if
  students think everyone is doing it

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What Works Substance Abuse Prevention
Key elements of effective substance abuse
programs include

• Provide developmentally appropriate material and
  activities
• Use interactive teaching techniques
• Actively involve the family and community
• Include teacher training and support contain
  material that is easy for teachers to implement
  and culturally relevant for students

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What Works Violence Prevention

• Key elements of violence prevention programs
  include
• Activities designed to foster school norms
  against violence, aggression, and bullying
• Skills training based on a strong theoretical
  foundation
• A comprehensive, multi-faceted approach,
  including family, peer, media, and community

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What Works Violence Prevention

• Key elements include
• Physical and administrative changes to promote
  positive school climate
• Interactive teaching
• Developmentally appropriate interventions
• Teacher training

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What Does Not Work

• Scare tactics
• Instructional programs that are too brief and not
  supported by a positive school administration
• Programs that focus exclusively on self-esteem
• Programs providing only didactic information
  without helping students to develop the necessary
  refusal skills

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NCLB Principles

• Principles of Effectiveness
• Comprehensive Approach
• Science Based Programming
• Collaboration

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Principles of Effectiveness

• Assessment of objective data regarding violent
  behavior and illegal drug use and conditions that
  produce them.
• Based on established set of performance measures
  designed to ensure a safe, orderly drug-free
  learning environment.
• Based on scientifically-based research with
  evidence that the program will reduce violence
  and substance abuse.

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Principles of Effectiveness

• Based on an analysis of the prevalence of risk
  and protective factors/buffers/assets.
• Based on meaningful, ongoing input and
  consultation from parents in the development and
  implementation of the plan.

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Needs Assessment and Objective Data

• Collect data YRB incidence and prevalence, age
  of onset, perception of health risk, perception
  of social disapproval, violent-related and
  drug-related suspensions and expulsions,
  disciplinary referrals, etc.

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Needs Assessment and Objective Data

• Analyze data collected
• What is the incidence and prevalence of violence
  and substance abuse in our district and school?
• Does the student data present a positive or
  negative picture of the current situation?
• How are students doing compared to students in
  the state?
• Are trends heading in the desired direction?

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Risk and Protective Factor Data

• Are there risk factors contributing to the
  current situation of our students?
• What protective factors have potential to
  mitigate the risk factors present in our current
  situation?
• Are there sufficient protective factors in the
  lives of our children to offset the risk factors?

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Resource Assessment

• What are the resources available to our school
  and community to address deficiencies found in
  our needs assessment?
• Which risk factor(s) does the program address?
• How does the program increase protective factors?
• What age group(s) are served by the program?
• Does the program address the needs of all
  students or a targeted group?
• Is the program of sufficient duration and
  intensity to make a difference in the targeted
  behavior?

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Needs Assessment How to Utilize Data

• Problem Observed Conflicts occurring among
  students and between students and teachers at
  Anywhere Junior High School current disciplinary
  responses are reactive, time-consuming, and seem
  only marginally effective too much teacher time
  spent on intervening rather than on instruction

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Utilizing Data

• Objective Data from the needs assessment
• 20 increase in number of fights this year
  compared to last
• More than twice as many weapons confiscated
  compared to last year
• 45 of students noted they did not feel safe at
  school as reported on the YRB survey
• Parent concerns about school safety are
  increasing as reflected on a PTA survey
• 15 increase in assault cases in juvenile court

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Needs Assessment Data

• Risk factors targeted for reduction
• Reduce alienation and rebelliousness
• Reduce rewards for anti-social behaviors

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Needs Assessment Data

• Protective factors targeted for enhancement
• Increase opportunities and rewards for positive
  involvement in school
• Increase social and self competency skills
• Improve communication skills
• Enhance positive peer relationships

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Setting Goals/Performance Measures

• Students of Anywhere Junior High School will
  successfully manage and resolve conflict as
  evidenced by a 25 reduction in the number of
  fights and the number of weapons brought to
  school and by a 15 improvement in student,
  teacher, and parent perceptions of school safety
  as measured by the following YRB survey, teacher
  survey, and parent school climate survey.

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Needs Assessment How to Utilize Data

• Problem observed Administrators and teachers at
  City High School have seen an increase in the
  number of students with school performance and
  attendance problems who have been found to have
  alcohol and other drug problems, and who express
  a lack of commitment to school.

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Utilizing Data

• Objective data from needs assessment
• 2005 YRB survey found increased levels of alcohol
  use among 10th and 12th graders (also higher than
  the state average)
• The percent of 10th graders who reported it is OK
  to drink alcohol increased from 40 to 52
  between 2001-2003
• 22 increase in the current school year of
  alcohol-related offenses at school and
  school-sponsored events
• Increase of 20 over the last three years in the
  number of drug-related suspensions and expulsions
• 25 increase in vandalism within the community
  (data from juvenile court referrals)

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Needs Assessment Data

• Risk factors targeted for reduction
• Delay initiation of alcohol use (age of onset)
• Reduce the number of friends who use
• Decrease favorable attitudes toward use

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Needs Assessment Data

• Protective factors targeted for enhancement
• Increase social skills
• Increase opportunities and rewards for positive
  involvement in school and the community

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Setting Goals/Performance Measures

• By June, 2007, students at City High School will
  report a 25 reduction in reported alcohol use by
  10th graders, increase by 15 the 12th graders
  reporting that they have never used alcohol, and
  decrease by 15 the number of alcohol-related
  suspensions and expulsions.

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Steps to Programming Addressing Risk and
Protective Factors

• Define a population
• Assess needs assess levels of risk, protection,
  and behavior for the targeted population
• Individuals
• Families
• Peers
• Schools
• Communities

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Steps to Programming Addressing Risk and
Protective Factors

• Develop a comprehensive program to address the
  district and school goals, using science-based
  programs and practices
• Focus on all levels of risk with special
  attention to those with high risk and low
  protection

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Steps to Programming Addressing Risk and
Protective Factors

• Address attitudes and norms
• Strengthen skills critical thinking,
  communications, and social competency
• Ensure the strategies are appropriate for the
  population addressed

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Steps to Programming Addressing Risk and
Protective Factors

• Strengthen social bonding programs that
  strengthen caring relationships, provide mentors
• Reduce risk and enhance protection in families
  strengthen families to set rules, clarify
  expectations, monitor behavior, provide support
  and model positive behavior